How to solve the US debt in 10 Steps

[Envend]

1) Cut military spending by removing troops from the random countries we have troops in
2) Issuing tax cuts to help stimulate business and increase our GDP
3) Increase social security age requirement
4) Stop cutting important programs such as education
5) Decrease Medicare and Medicaid benefits
6) Stop fighting in the Middle East against terrorists
7) Gradually increase funding to alternate energy and decrease oil subsidies
8) Stop giving stimulus packages to save boss companies
9) Reduce government regulations on businesses
10) Cut all other spending by 10-20% except research/education

What do you guys think?

[GREENBACK]

Very original! Now, get yourself elected and make all this stuff happen. I'm sure you won't have any opposition and we'll all live happily ever after. Btw, welcome to the site.

[littleroc02us]

I like those ideas, but I don't think any policitian could ever be elected with those principle's because the people would whine about having to take cuts and sacrifice. Majority of citizens don't want to be told "No" that they can't have something. We are a greedy country and have gotten use to having. I would add individual opt out to the Social Security system and cutting the benifits back some.

[jpg7n16]

Aside from the international backlash of withdrawing troops too quickly - and backing off the terrorist harboring countries, loss of all votes from the entire 60+ demographic, outrage by every employee in the federal government (salaries are expenses too), the fact that several people used their stimulus money to pay down debt - and didn't help businesses, that lowering taxes would decrease the federal income (which is not based on GDP), and that paying more on research/education would not help reduce the budget deficit.... aside from all that, your plan could work.

The energy companies would love you though.

[DanielB]

1) Cut military spending by removing troops from the random countries we have troops in
2) Issuing tax cuts to help stimulate business and increase our GDP
3) Increase social security age requirement
4) Stop cutting important programs such as education
5) Decrease Medicare and Medicaid benefits
6) Stop fighting in the Middle East against terrorists
7) Gradually increase funding to alternate energy and decrease oil subsidies
8) Stop giving stimulus packages to save boss companies
9) Reduce government regulations on businesses
10) Cut all other spending by 10-20% except research/education

What do you guys think?

If I may be a bit harsh - all of these things have been suggested by current politicians, but none have spine enough to commit to exact details. With all respect, I find the same flaw in your plan. For instance, you refer to tax cuts - great, but what will you cut exactly and by how much exactly - and how will the revenue decrease be handled? Another example: increase social security age requirement - to what?

Without specific details, any plan might sound nice and "market-able" - the truth of the matter is that a real leader commits to specific, actionable changes. These steps don't meet that criteria.

[rj.phila]

agree w/ daniel b.

#2 is null and void. trickle down economics has been discredited by enough economists for me to not take it seriously.

1,3,5,6-yes.

4,7-wont help budget. worth investing in, but will hurt budget in short term.

conversations on the budget that dont involve A) restructuring tax codes(i.e. raising taxes) and B) cutting defense spending are, frankly, going nowhere fast, at least to me.

[Frugal]

I agree. Now, if only the politicians had the common sense to draft a list like your's!

[canada94]

And who said politics wasnt fun.lol

[AtoZ]

No debate that most of those would be a good start. I'd like to see some actual numbers assigned to some of them if anyone has them.

[Jenniferw]

I do not think US are really planning on return these debt.

[maat55]

[QUOTE]

1) Cut military spending by removing troops from the random countries we have troops in

Agreed.

2) Issuing tax cuts to help stimulate business and increase our GDP

Implement the Fair Tax which would eliminate all taxes on production.

3) Increase social security age requirement

Phaze it out. SS is stealing the wealth potential of the poor, replace it with manadated 401k system.

4) Stop cutting important programs such as education

Education is a state and local issue, not that of the federal government. Since the DOE has been in place, test scores have consistantly dropped.

5) Decrease Medicare and Medicaid benefits

Eliminate them and allow the free market to work. States can offer low cost insurance through sin taxes.

6) Stop fighting in the Middle East against terrorists

Agreed. Hit them hard when necessary, then leave, no nation building.

7) Gradually increase funding to alternate energy and decrease oil subsidies

After the deficits are gone, and have no restrictions on any energy form.

8) Stop giving stimulus packages to save boss companies

Agreed, no stimulus period, the free market should determine all investments.

9) Reduce government regulations on businesses

Agreed.

10) Cut all other spending by 10-20% except research/education

No research dollars until budget is balanced and debt is reduced significantly.

Education is still a state and local issue. Dollars do not determine a good education.

[ukgaz]

How about increasing work on the Bakken oil reserve - There is about 24 billion barrels of oil that can be successfully extracted at this point.

Plenty of money to be made there for the US

[geraldo.derr]

Very relevant ideas but name one politician who will take the onus to implement these reforms at the cost of his personal popularity.

[JoeP]

I'd also add: stop giving military and financial aid to countries (a couple in the Middle East come to mind) but continue humanitarian aid in concert with other countries, stop getting involved in wars, privatize retirement for government workers, encourage limited population growth, teach our youth basic financial skills, stop bailing out banks and big business, reduce/limit the influence of corporate lobbyists, forbid from drug companies advertisements that simply boost demand and put load on our already burdened health care industry, legalize the cultivation and private use of recreational drugs (i.e., mj) so we don't have minor infractions clogging our justice systems.

[Singuy]

I'm for cutting tax on the poor and increasing tax on the super rich to 1960 levels (70-90%).
I don't understand why there's a 10% increase in tax jump for the people making 36k/year(15-25%) but there are no more tax bracket jumps for peeps making over 406k/year? Let it keep going until you reach 90%. 406k-700k@39%, 700k-1.5mil@45%, 1.5mil-2.5mil@55% and etc..while lowering the taxes for the poor. This will help stimulate the economy because now you have more people able to buy more soap and toilet paper (So huge ass corporations like DOVE and Bounty can make MORE money now..even though they are taxed more)..while the super rich also just buys one set of soap and toilet paper (super rich doesn't stimulate the economy like the 99% do..because the purchasing power comes from the 99% of the people).

Also tax capital gains at a higher rate.

I feel that everyone is getting screwed except those who makes a stupid amount of money(and these people are not even trying to make money..money just comes to them via captial gains).

And before you call my a crier, my wife and I make 320k/year (400k next year)..we feel that those who makes 10x more than us should pay a much higher % than we do. We really need to decrease the tax for people making 100k or less..usually the super rich(and even myself being upper middle)..doesn't have to deal with mortgages/property taxes that takes away 40% of the paycheck like people making 100k/year or less do.

Most household making the average of 53k/year ends up living paycheck to paycheck because studies have shown that it costs 113k/year to live the "American Dream"(1 car,270k house, 2 kids, 1 vacation/year). So why are we taxing the crap out of these people? Because they are not "job creators?". But the common people ARE the job creators. They are the ones who keeps your icecream shop open because they have enough disposible income to pay for the icecream. Maybe they will stop buying icecream when they find themselves broke all the time.